Lemme share with you a part of my life. You are around the same age as me, but my case goes back to when I was in my secondary sch era.
I mature very late at that time and I do not know what is "love" or anything related to it. All I know is: a totally NEW emotion existed in me. I have known her since childhood and even though we met occasionally (we were neighbours), I yearn to meet her and her family. I did not notice this but when I felt the NEW emotion at age 14, the way I saw her, treated her and thought about her are totally different compared to when I was a kid.I developed feelings for her. Be it "crush", "infatuation", anything. I had feelings for her. Many times I wanted to tell her how I felt, but being the introverted person I was, I could not do it and furthermore I felt pressure from her parents and relatives. Seems like they expected me to be better than I am (or was) and I do not know how to handle it. So I kept mum about this feeling.
I fell for her secretly for more than 5 years but never had the "balls" to tell her so. It was during a certain day that I decided to go to her house and visit them. I met her family but never saw her, so I casually asked and her mother told me she was out with her boyfriend. Boy, can you feel all the different emotions rushed into me at that time.It took me some time to think the whole thing through. Being the more negative character I was at that time, I decided to end it all. I was tired of holding a torch for her, unable to tell her my feelings, thinking of her in someone else's embrace. I remembered I had a picture of her and her family kept in my wallet at that time. I took it and burned it as a form of determination to let it go. It wasn't easy at first, but I have a good brother to help me and time slowly rub off this emotion or feelings for her.
Many things happened since then, but if I have the chance to meet them again, I will still be very happy to see them for they are a part of my life and I will love them more than I did before. As for her, my love for her won't be similar to the past but more of a brotherly love towards a sister. And I pray for them. Afterall, my being christian was partly influenced by them and I am very much having joy now as I was with them in the past.Friend, life is like a book of many chapters, no matter how much we want to stay in a past chapter, we have to move on to the next chapter. Who knows? There may be a BETTER chapter waiting for you to flip to? Move on, there WILL BE better things in newer chapters.
